"(B) are, or who died while they were, retired with pay or granted retired or retainer pay, other than those granted retired pay under section 1331 of this title; however, a person who is eligible for selection under clause (1) of subsection (a) may not be selected under this clause." (4) Section 4342(b) (3) is amended by striking out "the Army Reserve" and inserting in place thereof "reserve components of the Army". (5) Section 9342(b) (3) is amended by striking out "the Air Force Reserve" and inserting in place thereof "reserve components of the Air Force". SEC. 2. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, none of the additional appointments authorized in sections 4342(b)(1), 6954(b)(1) and 9342(b)(1) as provided by this Act shall serve to reduce or diminish the number of qualified alternates from congressional sources who would otherwise be appointed by the appropriate service Secretary under the authority contained in sections 4343, 6956, and 9343 of title 10, United States Code. Passed the House of Representatives July 18, 1966. Attest: RALPH R. ROBERTS, Clerk. Chairman RUSSELL. The witness on this bill is Lt. Col. William J. Mahon, Chief of the Air Force Academy Activities Branch. All right, Colonel. STATEMENT OF LT. COL. WILLIAM J. MAHON, CHIEF, AIR FORCE ACADEMY ACTIVITIES GROUP, DIRECTORATE OF PERSONNEL TRAINING AND EDUCATION, DEPUTY CHIEF OF STAFF, PERSONNEL, HEADQUARTERS, U.S. AIR FORCE; ACCOMPANIED BY LT. COL. F. G. ROCKWELL, OFFICE OF THE DEPUTY CHIEF OF STAFF FOR PERSONNEL, DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY; COMDR. DONALD A. SMITH, HEAD, NAVAL ACADEMY MIDSHIPMAN'S BRANCH, BUREAU OF NAVAL PERSONNEL, DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY; AND LT. COL. CHARLES C. ANDERSON, DEPUTY REGISTRAR, AIR FORCE ACADEMY, DEPARTMENT OF THE AIR FORCE Colonel MAHON. I have other people accompanying me this morning. From the Army, Lt. Col. Frederick G. Rockwell, chief of the OCS, Military Academy Branch, deputy chief of staff, Personnel, Headquarters, U.S. Army. We have Comdr. Donald A. Smith from the Navy. He is the head of the Naval Academy Midshipman's Branch, Bureau of Naval Personnel, U.S. Navy. From the Air Force we have Lt. Col. Charles C. Anderson, the deputy registrar of the U.S. Air Force Academy. Chairman RUSSELL. We have a degree of unification with respect to this bill. You may proceed, Colonel. Colonel MAHON. I appreciate the opportunity to appear before you today to testify on behalf of the Department of Defense on H.R. 9916, to amend title 10, United States Code, with respect to the nomination and selection of candidates for appointment to the Military, Naval, and Air Force Academies. In summary, this bill includes provisions which will: 1. Establish eligibility in the sons of deceased veterans category for sons of members of the Armed Forces who died or were 100-percent disabled as a result of active service. 2. Establish authority for the President pro tempore of the Senate to nominate candidates for vacancies available to the Vice President, if there is no Vice President. 3. Establish eligibility in the Presidential category for sons of all career members of the Armed Forces who are on active duty and have been continuously on active duty for 8 years, or who are retired or who die while retired, and to enlarge the quota in this category at each academy from 75 to 100 per year. 4. Clarify the eligibility in the Reserve category for members of the National Guard, of the Army, and Air Force. I will discuss each of these proposed changes separately. The Department of Defense favors extending the eligibility in the sons of deceased veterans category to sons of veterans who are 100percent disabled, and to sons of veterans who are killed or disabled as a result of active duty. This will include sons of veterans killed or disabled in time of declared war, in time of cold war such as Korea or Vietnam and in peacetime. The families of those servicemen who are killed or disabled in line of duty during peacetime suffer the same hardships and are handicapped to approximately the same extent as the families who have suffered the loss of a husband and father in combat. The Department of Defense believes it to be both logical and proper that our country afford the same opportunity to these young men that they afford to the sons of men who are killed or disabled in time of war. The determination of the Veterans' Administration as to service connection of the cause of death as well as the percent of disability will be binding upon the service Secretaries. Little discussion is needed on the proposed change allowing the President pro tempore of the Senate to nominate candidates for vacancies authorized to the Vice President on those rare occasions when there is no Vice President. It parallels other arrangements to continue the functions of this office. The Department of Defense supports this change. Another provision of this proposed bill would recognize the valuable service rendered by career members of Reserve components who are on active duty, making their sons eligible to compete for appointment in the Presidential category in the same manner as sons of Regular members. For many years, members of Reserve components of the armed services have been serving their country side by side with members of the Regular Establishment. Historical precedent in law has established 8 years of continuous active duty as a basis for considering a member of the armed services to be in a career status. The bill also provides eligibility for sons of those members who retired or died while retired. The Presidential nomination category is already quite competitive. As the bill would increase the number of young men eligible in this competition, it also increases the number of annual vacancies for each academy from 75 to 100. Theoretically, this would increase the total authorized strength of each academy from 4,417 to 4,517. It is not the intent of this bill, however, to increase the total number of cadets or midshipmen actually attending an academy. Existing and planned facilities are geared to the maximum presently authorized by law. To offset the proposed increase of up to 25 per year, there will be a corresponding decrease in the number of young men appointed in either the Regular or Reserve category, or appointed to fill these vacancies allocated to the service Secretaries. In no instance will the additional 25 Presidential appointees diminish the 75 percent of the secretarial qualified alternates that must come from those young men nominated by Members of Congress. The Department of Defense supports an expansion of the Presidential category to include sons of all career members of the armed services and the increase in the quota from 75 to 100. The current law states that the Secretaries may nominate members of the Army and Air Force Reserve. The proposed changes in H.R. 9916 amend the language to read "Reserve components of the Army," and "Reserve components of the Air Force." The purpose of this technical change is to insure that members of the respective National Guards are eligible for competition to the academies in the Reserve category. The Department of Defense supports this change. It has been a pleasure to appear before this committee today. Chairman RUSSELL. Colonel, section 2 under this title, as I understand it, is designed to protect the congressional appointments from any encroachment. Colonel MAHON. Yes, sir. Chairman RUSSELL. But this new category authorizes an additional 25 for each service academy. Colonel MAHON. That is right, sir. Chairman RUSSELL. Where will they come from? Who will you diminish to get these 25 extra? Colonel MAHON. The Secretarial qualified alternates. Chairman RUSSELL. In other words, this will come out of those alternates which he calls up. Colonel MAHON. Yes, sir. Chairman RUSSELL. To fill in. None of the schools are now up to fully authorized strength, are they? Colonel MAHON. The Navy is, sir. Chairman RUSSELL. Pardon? Colonel MAHON. The Navy is almost up to full strength. Chairman RUSSELL. The Navy is almost? Colonel MAHON. Right, sir. The Army is not and the Air Force is not. Chairman RUSSELL. There would be no difficulty in handling these extra 25 cadets at each academy? Colonel MAHON. No, sir. Chairman RUSSELL. Senator Saltonstall. Senator SALTONSTALL. Mr. Chairman, just two or three questions. I assume that you mean by this that if a man is in the service, and we will say he is run over by a truck, or is killed in an airplance accident or something of that character in peacetime, his son would be qualified. Colonel MAHON. Yes, sir, he would be eligible. Senator SALTONSTALL. That would have to be certified by the Department of Defense. Colonel MAHON. By the Veterans' Administration, sir. Senator SALTONSTALL. Now there is one thing that I question a little bit, perhaps sentimentally as much as anything else. You have given the President pro tempore of the Senate the appointments. of the Vice President. Now personally, perhaps by way of sentiment or in any other regard, I hate to think that we will have no Vice President because that means either that he is killed or died. Shouldn't those appointments lapse for a year or two years? I just don't like the idea of providing for a President to be assassinated, or for a Vice President to die. Colonel MAHON. We do not either, sir. Chairman RUSSELL. As a matter of fact, it was put in there because the President was killed, wasn't it? Colonel MAHON. Yes, sir. Chairman RUSSELL. And the vacancies couldn't be filled. I don't see any objection to it personally. Senator SYMINGTON. Neither do I. Senator SALTONSTALL. I say it is purely from sentiment as much as anything. I don't like the idea. I think those are the only two questions I have. The Reserve officer would have to be serving for 8 years. Colonel MAHON. Eight years, sir. Senator SALTONSTALL. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Chairman RUSSELL. Senator Symington. Senator SYMINGTON. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. What is the definition of 100-percent disability? Colonel MAHON. That is decided by the VA, sir. Senator SYMINGTON. By whom? Colonel MAHON. The Veterans' Administration. Senator SYMINGTON. Why aren't the Army and Air Force Academies up to full strength? Colonel MAHON. The Army and Air Force are on their way up now, sir. Actually, the physical facilities would not handle the increase. Senator SYMINGTON. Is it the physical facilities? Colonel MAHON. Yes, sir. Senator SYMINGTON. When do you expect that to be cleared up? Colonel MAHON. Approximately 1969, sir. Senator SYMINGTON. For both? Colonel MAHON. We expect our first full complement of cadets in 1971, and the Army expects their's in 1972. Senator SYMINGTON. The Navy has been pretty tight on space down at Annapolis, but they seem to have been able to work it out. Colonel MAHON. Yes, sir. Senator SYMINGTON. This bill would not in any way preclude competition, would it? If these men are given a chance, they will have no better chance than anybody else? Colonel MAHON. No, sir. Senator SYMINGTON. They are just given the opportunity, is that correct? Colonel MAHON. Right, sir. Senator SYMINGTON. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Chairman RUSSELL. Senator Cannon. Senator CANNON. No questions, Mr. Chairman. Chairman RUSSELL. Senator Young. Senator YOUNG. No questions, Mr. Chairman. Chairman RUSSELL. Senator Inouye. Senator INOUYE. Mr. Chairman. When you speak of retired members, do you cover persons retired because of disability also? Colonel MAHON. Yes, sir. Senator INOUYE. I realize this matter is not in the bill, Mr. Chairman, if I may bring up this subject, I recall quite some time ago the administration submitting a bill authorizing the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of State to nominate young men from selected foreign countries for admission to the service academies. Would you object to including it in this bill? Colonel MAHON. No, sir. Senator INOUYE. I have no further questions. Chairman RUSSELL. Thank you very much. Any further questions by members of the committee? If not, we thank you very much for your presence here. Colonel MAHON. Thank you. (Subsequently, in executive session, the committee voted to report H.R. 9916 without amendment, as covered by S. Rept. 1670.) H.R. 7973 Chairman RUSSELL. The next bill on the agenda this morning is H.R. 7973, which would permit certain civilian instructors at the Military Academy to occupy public quarters without charge. (The bill referred to follows:) [H.R. 7973, 89th Cong., 2d sess.] AN ACT To amend section 4339 of title 10, United States Code Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That section 4339 of title 10, United States Code, is amended to read as follows: "§ 4339. Organist and choirmaster; civilian instructors in departments of foreign languages and tactics: quarters, fuel, and light "(a) The organist and choirmaster of the Academy is entitled to public quarters without charge when they are available, and to fuel and light without charge when he occupies public quarters. "(b) The civilian instructors in the departments of foreign languages and tactics are entitled to public quarters without charge and fuel and light therefor without charge." SEC. 2. This amendatory Act shall be effective as of October 29, 1949. RALPH R. ROBERTS, Clerk. Chairman RUSSELL. The witness to present this bill is Lt. Col. Frederick G. Rockwell from the Office of the Army Deputy Chief of Staff for Personnel. You may proceed colonel. STATEMENT OF LT. COL. FREDERICK G. ROCKWELL, OFFICE OF THE DEPUTY CHIEF OF STAFF FOR PERSONNEL, DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY Colonel ROCKWELL. I am Lt. Col. Frederick G. Rockwell, Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Personnel, Department of the Army. The Department of the Army has been designated as the representative of the Department of Defense for this legislation. I represent the Department of the Army for that purpose. |